In the world of custom ROM flashing, it’s often needed to revert back to a stock firmware on your device, for many reasons including wanting to recover the device from a bad custom ROM flash or simply returning to stock from a custom ROM which you don’t like. The Galaxy Note 10.1 is sure to receive a lot of attention in the custom ROM development world, which is where this guide comes in.

This guide will help you restore your Galaxy Note 10.1 Wi-Fi variant (N8010) to the stock N8010XXALGC (or simply XXALGC) Ice Cream Sandwich Android 4.0.4 firmware. Flashing this firmware will not affect your device’s warranty nor will it increase the dreaded flash counter nor show the yellow triangle when booting up the device, so it is perfectly safe to flash and will get your device back to stock.

Continue reading how you can restore your Galaxy Note 10.1 to the XXALGC Samsung firmware.

Compatibility

This firmware and the guide below are compatible only and only with Galaxy Note 10.1 Wi-Fi variant, model number N8010. It’s not compatible with any other device. Check your device’s model number in: Settings » About tablet.

Warning!

The methods and procedures discussed here are considered risky and you should not attempt anything if you don’t know completely what it is. If any damage occurs to your device, we won’t be held liable.

How to Install N8010XXALGC Firmware on Galaxy Note 10.1 Wi-Fi (N8010)

  1. Backup all your apps, data and settings.  Backup your Apps and important data — bookmarks, contacts, SMS, APNs (internet settings), etc. This Android backup guide would help you. Be sure to make a backup, so that if anything goes wrong with the flash, you can restore your data.
  2. It’s important you’ve the proper drivers for the tablet installed. If you have installed Samsung’s Kies software, you already have the drivers, so download them only if you haven’t installed Kies.
    Download links: 32 bit (x86) Windows  |   64-bit (x64) Windows
  3. Download the firmware.
    Download XXALGC  |  Filename: N8010XXALGC_N8010PAPALG5_PAP.zip  |  Size: 1187.4 MB
  4. Extract the N8010XXALGC_N8010PAPALG5_PAP.zip file to obtain a file named N8010XXALGC_N8010PAPALG5_HOME.tar.md5 (the file name may end at .tar, which is normal as the .md5 extension may be hidden).
  5. Download Odin 1.85 from → here.
    Filename: Odin 1.85.zip | Size: 199 KB
  6. Extract the contents of the Odin 1.85.zip file to a folder.
  7. Disconnect your tablet if it’s connected to PC, then switch it off.
  8. Then, turn off the tablet. Then boot into download mode (odin mode) on the tablet by holding down Power and Volume Down buttons (volume down is the button next to the power button) together till you get a Warning!! screen. Here, press Volume Up to continue to enter download mode.
  9. Open Odin — double-click the Odin3 v1.85.exe that you got after extracting the file Odin 1.85.zip.
  10. Click the PDA button in Odin, then browse to and select the N8010XXALGC_N8010PAPALG5_HOME.tar.md5 file you obtained in step 4. Do not make any other changes in Odin and make sure the Re-Partition option is not selected.
  11. Connect your tablet to PC now. You should get the message “Added!” under Odin’s message box in the bottom left.
    If you don’t get this message, then probably there is a problem with drivers. Make sure you’ve proper drivers installed (check step 2). Also, uninstall Kies from the Control Panel as well if you have it installed.
  12. Now, hit the START button to start flashing the firmware on the tablet. When the flashing is complete, your tablet will automatically reboot — and when you see the Samsung logo, you can safely unplug the cable. Plus, you’ll get a PASS message (with green background) in the left-most box at the very top of Odin.
    What to do if Odin gets stuck: If ODIN gets stuck and doesn’t seem to be doing anything, or you get a FAIL message (with red background) in ODIN, disconnect the tablet from the PC, close ODIN, press and hold the Volume Down + Power buttons till the tablet reboots and shows you the Warning!! screen, then press Volume Up to enter download mode again, then repeat the procedure from step 9.
  13. [Important] After you get the PASS message and the tablet reboots, the tablet might get stuck at the booting animation/Samsung logo. If that happens, perform the following steps to make it boot. Remember that these steps will wipe your personal data like contacts, apps, messages, etc. If your tablet has already booted, skip these steps, the flash has been successful:
    1. Boot to recovery mode — for which, press and hold down Power andVolume Up buttons together till the device reboots. When the screen turns on, let go of the power button but keep holding down the volume up button till the device boots into recovery.. Once you are in recovery mode, use volume keys to move the selection up and down and power key to select the option.
    2. Go to Wipe data/Factory Reset and select it. Select Yes on next screen.
    3. Then, select reboot system now to reboot the tablet, which will now boot properly.
  14. If you run into any roadblocks while flashing the firmware, let us know and we’ll help you out.

Your Galaxy Note 10.1 N8010 has now been restored to the N8010XXALGC firmware. Do let us know how it works!